Another Year at Hogwarts with the Sohmas
by aridancer
Summary: A story about a girl and her sister who attend Hogwarts and grow dangerously close to a unique family- the Sohma family- and Tohru Honda, who is also a student there. Contains OCs and both canon and non-canon elements from HP and FB. Set in an alternate world sans Harry Potter and his legacy. Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Fruits Basket.
1. Welcome Back

[A/N: Yes, this is a self-insert story; but give it a chance and then rate/review to let me know what you think :) Pairings will become clearer as the story unfolds. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.]

* * *

Ariel yawned and resisted the urge to rub her eyes- it would smear what little makeup she bothered to wear. She hadn't gone to sleep until 2:30 am. Ariel was never able to fall asleep at a decent hour when the next day would be an important one: for example, today. She supposed going shopping for school supplies in Diagon Alley wasn't really that important, but since it was the last year she'd be doing so, it felt a little more significant than usual. Ariel was feeling a slight tug of nostalgia, but she moved it to the back of her mind and focused on the task at hand.

Her sister, Tamara, walked along beside her. Tamara looked like a younger version of Ariel: Tamara's brown eyes and skin were a little lighter, her curly dark hair was a little shorter, and where Ariel had slender curves, Tamara was long and willowy; almost as tall as her sister even though they were about three years apart.

"What else do we need to get?" Tamara asked, taking a glance at the list she had received in the post. "I have everything I need."

"Hmm…" Ariel looked at her own list. Everything seemed to be checked off, even the non-required items like extra broom polish. "I think there's one more thing we need."

"What's that?"

"Ice cream." Ariel grinned cheesily and made a beeline for Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor. The weather was a little grey, as is typical in London, but it was warm enough to enjoy a bowl of ice cream. In fact, Ariel would probably still want to eat ice cream if it were snowing.

She and Tamara went inside and ordered their favorite flavors, setting down their various packages and parcels at one of the indoor tables.

As Ariel was starting on her second scoop of chocolate fudge brownie, the bell above the door chimed, and a few more Hogwarts students walked in.

"Oh! Hello," one of them said, waving. Ariel smiled as she recognized Tohru Honda, who was two years below her, along with a fourth year Hufflepuff and two younger students she didn't know. "How are you, Ariel? Did you have a nice summer?"

Ariel nodded and was about to reply when someone cut her off.

"Oh, you're the Hufflepuff Quidditch Captain! Wow, hi! I'm Momiji Sohma! It's so nice to see you in person!" The fourth year bounded over and smiled sweetly. He had curly blond hair and sparkling hazel eyes, and he was about two heads shorter than Tohru, who walked over to stand beside him. A little auburn-haired girl followed Tohru like a shadow, peering shyly around her at Ariel and Tamara, and the other, a boy with a slightly angular face and floppy brown hair, sighed dramatically before stalking over to join them.

"It's good to see you too, Momiji," Ariel said, smiling. That kid just brightened up every place he went- she didn't even mind that he had interrupted her. "My summer was great, Tohru. How was yours?"

"Oh, it was wonderful! I got to spend a lot of time with everyone I love. Oh, this is Kisa- she's going to be starting her first year at Hogwarts."

Kisa smiled, but she didn't move from behind Tohru. Momiji waved happily at Tamara, who smiled uncomfortably and kept eating her ice cream. Momiji weirded her out a little- he was too sweet and little kid-y, even though he was the same age as her.

"What, you don't even bother to introduce me? And after I let you drag me to this place. You know, you shouldn't assume that just because we're kids, we like eating this kind of sugary crap. You could have taken us to an actual restaurant or something where we could eat something that's actually nutritious." The other boy folded his arms and let out an annoyed breath.

"Oh! I'm sorry," Tohru apologized profusely. "Ariel, this is Hiro. It's his second year- he's a Ravenclaw."

Hiro pursed his lips. "Whatever."

"Hiro, don't be mean to sissy," Kisa pleaded quietly. The boy's expression softened a little, and he stared at the floor.

Ariel finished her ice cream and stood. "Tohru, I'd love to stay and chat some more, but we have to get going. See you on the train?"

"Uh huh!" Tohru bowed and waved happily as Ariel and Tamara exited the ice cream parlor. On their way out, Ariel gazed up at the sky.

"Hogwarts, here we come."

* * *

"Welcome back to another year at Hogwarts!" Professor Dumbledore said cheerily. "I hope you all had a wonderful summer. Mr. Filch has asked me to remind you…"

Ariel began to zone out. It wasn't because the Headmaster's speech was boring, or anything like that- she was just trying to come to terms with the fact that it would be her last Welcome Feast. She was trying to drink it all in so everything would stay with her forever.

"…course a very warm welcome to… new staff members, quite a few…" Ariel looked up at the staff table. There really were quite a few new faces- she wondered if Dumbledore was going to introduce them each by name; her tummy was starting to growl.

Then her heart stopped.

At one end of the table sat a very handsome man who must have been in his late twenties. He had pale skin and dark hair swept over his face. On most people, that hairstyle would have been emo-lame, but it just made him look mysterious. His eyes were dark, too, but Ariel couldn't tell what color they were from a distance.

He was observing the Great Hall with an interested but detached expression. Around him, the other teachers were chatting in low tones or listening to Professor Dumbledore, but he was just gazing out at the Great Hall. For one thrilling moment, Ariel made eye contact with him, before he looked away.

"…enough time for that, as I'm sure you are all very ready to eat, and you'll see them plenty around the school. One more thing- tuck in. Let the feast begin!" Dumbledore sat down amid a round of applause as foods and drinks magically appeared, making the table groan under their weight. Several of the first years gasped in awe before joining everyone else in loading their plates up.

Ariel knew her eyes were bigger than her stomach, but she still piled breads, fruits, chicken, and pastries in front of her, along with a little bit of salad. As she indulged, she couldn't help glancing over at the teachers' table from time to time. The new teacher kept his eyes on what he was eating, for the most part. Ariel did her best not to stare at him, and followed Dumbledore's instructions to "tuck in".


	2. Becoming Fast Friends

Tamara kept glancing up from her notes, which she was writing as fast as she could with her good quill. Since it was her first class of the new term, and her favorite class, to boot, she wanted to start off on a good note- literally.

"…properties of these roots, and their uses," Professor Sprout continued on. "We're going to take the rest of this class time to observe these new plants in their natural habitats. Go ahead and pick a partner, and describe to them what you see. Write down what your partner describes, and hand it in at the end of class today. Have fun!"

Tamara finished writing and pulled out a fresh sheet of parchment for the assignment. She looked around, and it seemed like pretty much everyone had already paired up…

"Tamara! Will you be my partner today?" Momiji asked, smiling sweetly. His hair was shining like gold in the sunlight that was streaming into the greenhouse.

"Sure." Tamara shrugged and bent over a pretty pink flower. "This looks like Dittany. I see light pink petals, long white stamens, and brown stems with white fibers. The petals fade from pink to green at the base of the bulb, and the leaves are a mix of green and brown. Dittany is a powerful healing herb that can make fresh skin grow over a wound, and even consumes shallow wounds. "

"Wow, you're very good at describing!" Momiji clapped for her after he finished writing what she said. "And you know a lot about Dittany. You're smart, Tamara."

Tamara half-smiled. "Um, thanks."

"My turn!" Momiji skipped over to a large pot while Tamara readied her parchment and quill. "Ooh, let's do this one- it looks funny." He pointed and laughed. "They look like regular white onions, except they're green and are a little rounder. I think they're called Gurdyroots- you can make them into a drink. The drink is purple, even though the plants are green- isn't that funny? And I heard somewhere that you can use them to ward off Gulping Plimpies, but I don't know if that's true."

Tamara finished writing and nodded. "Cool. Which one should we do next?"

"It's your turn to pick," Momiji insisted. Tamara obliged, and they described four more plants each before the class was over. They handed in their work as they left the greenhouse.

"That was fun, wasn't it?" Momiji bounced next to Tamara on the way back to the main building.

"Yeah, it was." Tamara was distracted slightly by the sight of Kisa, walking quietly by herself. "Hey, isn't that your cousin?"

"Yes! Hi, Kisa! Are you having a good first day?"

The shy little girl glanced up at them. "I…" She held up her class schedule. "I don't know where to go."

Tamara looked at it, with Momiji reading over her shoulder. "Oh, you have Potions next. Yeah, it can be a little hard to find the dungeons if you haven't been there before. Do you want me to help you get there?" Tamara and Momiji had Transfiguration next, which wasn't too far from Potions. Besides, she couldn't just leave the little girl on her own.

Kisa nodded, big-eyed, and grabbed Tamara's hand.

"Let's all go together!" Momiji cheered. "It will be an adventure." The three of them went inside and headed downstairs, through the chattering crowds of students. Along the way, Momiji commented on everything, and Tamara didn't reply much, but she didn't mind letting him talk. Kisa just clung to Tamara like a shadow.

"Here we are. Just in time, too- Professor Snape doesn't appreciate latecomers," Tamara said to Kisa, gesturing to the open iron door of the Potions classroom. "Don't worry, though- you'll do fine."

"Thank you," Kisa whispered before going inside.

"We'd better hurry," Tamara said, walking quickly. "Professor McGonagall is loads better than Professor Snape, but she doesn't appreciate latecomers, either."

"That's true," Momiji laughed. "We'll make it; you'll see!"

Tamara hoped he was right, wondering for a moment why he was so buddy-buddy with her all of a sudden. They were in the same year and House, sure, and he was friendly to everyone, but he had never really shown so much interest in being her friend. She smiled. Although he was rather hyper and talkative, he actually didn't bug her as much as she thought he might have.

* * *

"Let's finish today's lesson with a brief review of last year's main curriculum. Ah, Ariel- would you demonstrate the Aguamenti Charm for us?"

Ariel obliged, taking out her golden pear-wood wand and pointing it into the air. "Aguamenti." A thin stream of clear blue water issued from the tip of her wand. Instead of letting it splash down onto the desk, Ariel created slow-moving spirals in the air, shifting them until they came together into an orb and floated there for a moment before evaporating.

"Oh, well done!" Professor Flitwick applauded enthusiastically. "How creative. Ten points to Hufflepuff!"

Ariel sat down to lunch, fairly pleased with how the first day had been going. She had a free first class period, which meant she got to sleep in, and she had easy classes for the rest of the day, not to mention the fact that she'd earned points in Charms.

"Hey." Tamara slid in next to her and started loading up her plate. "Good day?"

"So far, yes." Ariel smiled, and then gave Tamara a curious look when she saw Momiji sit right next to her. Tamara shrugged and began to chomp on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

"Hello again," Momiji said sweetly to Ariel. "Mm, this looks good." Next, Kisa sat beside him, with Tohru on the other side of Kisa.

A little surprised, but not unnerved, Ariel shrugged and spooned some ravioli onto her plate.

* * *

"Ariel! Hey, Ariel!"

She looked up from her Potions essay at the sound of someone calling her name. Tohru waved at her as she approached the table Ariel was sitting at.

"Some of us are going to play Rich Man Poor Man. Would you like to join us?"

"Well, I've got to finish this work… Maybe I'll just watch the first round. Where's the game?"

"Right over there." Tohru gestured to a growing group of students gathered around a table at the far end of the Great Hall. "Oh, but if you're busy studying, you don't have to come… I'm sorry if I've bothered you," she apologized.

"No worries. I could use a bit of a break," Ariel admitted, stretching her cramped fingers. She picked up her things and followed Tohru to the other table, where a tall Gryffindor girl with long, dark blond hair was passing out cards.

"You better not be cheating, Yank," Kyo Sohma muttered. "I still think someone else should have dealt 'em."

"You callin' me a cheater, Orange-Top?!"

"Yeah, 'cuz that's what ya are!"

"Um, Uo?" Tohru smiled and waved at them. "Ariel's going to watch our first game. Is it all right if I join, or have you started already?"

"Aww, of course, Tohru. You don't even have to ask." Uo, the 'Yankee' girl, stood up and hugged Tohru.

"Yes, we even saved a hand of cards for you," another girl said, holding them up for her to see. She was a Slytherin, with black hair in a braid and unsettling purple eyes. "Come, sit beside me and let us begin."

Among the other players were Rin Sohma, Rose and Mickey from the Hufflepuff Quidditch team, and a few assorted students Ariel didn't know personally.

Tohru sat with the other girl. "Thank you for waiting, Hana."

"It was no trouble at all."

They proceeded to begin playing, and Ariel didn't quite understand the rules, but that wasn't because it was complicated… It was because Kyo and Uo kept getting very excited, and yelled, slapped their cards down, or kicked the table every few seconds.

"Hah! Revolution!" Kyo crowed, practically shoving his cards in Uo's face.

"That makes all high cards low," Tohru whispered to Ariel in explanation.

"Reverse Revolution," Hana said eerily, displaying her cards for all to see. Kyo's eyes boggled at her.

"How do you manage to do that every time?"

"You don't want to know."

Ariel glanced up as Tamara sat next to her.

"Hey," she said, peering with curiosity at the card game. "What's this?"

"It's called Rich Man Poor Man," Ariel told her. "I'm not sure I really get it. You could probably pick it up quickly."

"I don't know…" Tamara looked skeptically at the cards strewn about the table.

"Oh! Tamara, would you like to join us?" Tohru asked sweetly. "We were just about to begin another round, since this one is over. I guess Hana won, but Kyo lost the worst."

"I did not!" Kyo grumbled. Tamara chuckled at his behavior, and he turned red. "That is not funny! I bet I could beat you," he said, glaring at Tamara.

"Wouldn't that be an impressive feat… winning against someone who doesn't know how to play," Hana said loftily.

Uo laughed aloud and ruffled Kyo's orange hair as Tohru handed out the cards. Kyo curled away from her, like a cat does when it doesn't want to be touched.

"Don't worry, we'll teach you," Tohru assured Tamara. "Ariel, are you sure you don't want to play?"

"Thanks, but I really need to finish up my work." Ariel smiled and waved as she stood. "See you guys later." In addition to classwork, she had to start planning for Quidditch practice during the weekend, and for heading tryouts the week after. She had a lot to do.


	3. Sweets for the Sweet

Tamara fiddled with a Nose-Biting Teacup before moving on to the next section of joke items. Aside from Dungbombs, she liked pretty much everything sold at Zonko's- and she would much rather spend her Saturday afternoon at the quirky joke shop than at Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop, which was where Tohru and Momiji had gone with Kisa (since it was their favorite shop, and it was Kisa's first time in Hogsmeade). Tamara and Hiro had opted out, and Ariel had gone off on her own, but they would all meet up later at Honeyduke's with some more friends.

Tamara glanced over at Hiro, who was standing several shelves away, with his arms crossed. She walked over to him, curious. "Are you okay?"

Hiro blinked, surprised that she was talking to him. "Uh... Yeah."

They stood there in silence for a moment. Then words started to tumble out of Hiro's mouth. "I mean, why did they have to go to that stupid shop anyway? They don't even know if she's going to like it, even though it's _their_ favorite place. The smelly perfume makes me sneeze, so I couldn't go in there, even if I wanted to, for Kisa's sake. That's the only reason I came here instead. Kisa would like it better here than Puddifoot's, anyway. I just want to take her to places that she likes- not with that other girl and the stupid bunny; just me and her." Hiro paused and tilted his head. "I don't even know why I'm telling you this."

Tamara shrugged. "If it makes you feel better to talk, I'm here to listen. I… know what it's like to be confused about your feelings, especially when you care about someone so much you can't even stand it."

Hiro opened his mouth and closed it, narrowing his eyes at her for a second. Then he relaxed and grinned. "You know what, Tamara… You're all right! For a Puff, that is."

Tamara smiled at him. "And you're not bad, yourself; for a Claw."

* * *

Ariel glanced up out of habit whenever the little bell on the door rang, which happened every time a customer entered or exited The Three Broomsticks. She curled her hands around her mug of Butterbeer and sighed. The first Quidditch practice of the year was always the toughest one, since it was supposed to get you back in shape for the season. She had exercised over the summer, of course, but it wasn't the same as practices two or three times a week with her teammates, and it took extra energy and effort when you had to be in charge of all the drills and warm-ups- which sometimes meant doing them multiple times, over and over again.

It was no surprise that her muscles were practically screaming at her; and it wasn't an unfamiliar sensation, but it still wasn't easy to get used to. Plus, she had the added stress of overseeing Quidditch tryouts the following weekend- the Hufflepuff team needed two new Chasers, a Keeper, and at least one reserve player. Her Keeper and two of her Chasers had graduated last year. And, she would also have to start deciding who to appoint as Captain once she graduated, which wouldn't be an easy decision.

Even though it would have been fun to tromp around the village with the others, Ariel didn't think she was physically or mentally capable of that at the moment. Plus, her first attempt at sightseeing had resulted in seeing the sight of a couple snogging passionately by the Shrieking Shack (wasn't it that Gryffindor boy Hatsuharu and his girlfriend?); so, she wound up sitting quietly by herself with a warm drink instead- which, when she thought about it, was actually fairly nice.

The door's bell tinkled once again, while Ariel was taking a sip. She looked to see who had come in, and almost spit out her Butterbeer. It was the handsome new teacher from Hogwarts whom she had noticed during the Welcome Feast, along with two other equally attractive men who seemed about the same age as him. Ariel suddenly felt very self-conscious about the fact that she was sitting alone- she probably looked like a loser.

While the men chose their seats, Ariel nonchalantly studied them. One was very tall and had hair of a pale, almost silvery blond color, and it was long enough to brush against the back of his knees, which it did until he sat and began to twist it into a long braid. His eyes were almost as pale as his hair, and his outfit was rather bright.

The second man was a little shorter than the other two, and had dark hair, dark eyes, and a humorous disposition. He was grinning lightheartedly and seemed to be flirting with the barmaid. And then, of course, the third looked the same as he had on the first day of term- dark hair swept over one eye and a withdrawn, mysterious expression.

Ariel realized the laughing one was glancing over at her, and her heart skipped a beat in panic as she dropped her gaze to the table, fidgeting with her almost-empty glass.

* * *

"Hey. Hey, Tori. She's kind of cute, isn't she?" Shigure leaned back in his seat and waggled his eyebrows, gesturing with his head at a girl who was sitting across the room from them. Hatori looked at her indiscreetly, out of the corner of his good eye. She had long, curly black hair and tan skin, and he recognized her from Hogwarts. He had noticed her on the very first day without meaning to- she stood out, somehow.

"Actually, she's _really_ cute," Shigure continued, grinning slyly. "You think she's here with a guy or no? I sure hope she isn't…"

"She is a student," Hatori said mildly. "I would suggest you keep your distance…"

"Oh, come now, Ha'ri; you're not jealous, are you?" Ayame asked, looking over at the girl, who was staring intently down at her table and could probably hear Shigure and Aya's loud voices from across the busy inn. He tied a band around the end of his now-finished braid. "Aw, look, she's shy."

"My kinda girl," Shigure joked. "Tori, you at least have to admit she is rather cute. I mean, look at her."

Hatori grudgingly complied, watching as she paid her bill and walked gracefully outside, pointedly avoiding looking in their direction. He almost smiled when he realized how red her cheeks were- was that from the heat, or was she embarrassed? How… cute…

"Ha. I rest my case," Shigure said, noticing Hatori's facial movements. "It's too bad she was in such a hurry. I wanted to go say hello."

"I'm glad you didn't," Aya said solemnly, gazing into Shigure's eyes. "She might have taken you away from me… And I don't think I would be able to handle that."

"Aya, don't you worry… I could never stay far from you for long," Shigure assured him softly.

Hatori rolled his eyes good-naturedly as the two of them exclaimed "Yess!" at the same time and gave each other a thumbs-up.

* * *

Tamara waved as Kyo, Yuki, Tohru, Momiji, and Kisa headed towards her and Hiro, where they were waiting outside of Honeydukes.

"Shall we go in?" Yuki asked pleasantly, smiling at Tohru.

"Yes! Oh, but shouldn't we wait for Ariel?" she asked worriedly, looking around.

"Oh, there she is!" Momiji waved both arms like a plane director- all he needed were those orange sticks they use- at Ariel, who approached them from the direction of The Three Broomsticks.

"The gang's all here. Yippee," Hiro deadpanned, going inside first. Everyone followed him and spread out in the store, marveling at all of the sugary goodies.

Tohru spotted Uo and Hana and went over to them with Yuki, while Kisa and Momiji trailed after Tamara towards the section that had all of the lollipops. Kyo folded his arms and tried to look bored, but his stomach was starting to get the better of him.

Ariel made a beeline for the shelves full of chocolate and stared, trying to decide what to get. Since she was an athlete, she burned off calories and fat pretty quickly, but if she ate too many sweets, they would not only affect her energy level, but would also add to her waistline and thighs.

She finally decided on just getting three plain Honeyduke's Chocolate bars, and would only let herself eat them on the weekends. Since there were three weeks until the next Hogsmeade visit, she could eat one per weekend and not have to feel too guilty. She also chose a small bag of Pepper Imps, just because she felt like it.

"Wow, look at this one! It'll turn your tongue rainbow," Momiji laughed, picking up a particularly colorful sucker. "That's so silly. Which one do you like, Kisa?"

She studied them all for a moment. "I like… that one," she said finally, pointing at a pink and white one, shaped like a cloud, which was higher up on the shelves.

"I'll get it for you," Tamara offered, since she was the tallest of the three. She reached up for it, and found that it was a little higher than she'd thought. Straining, she went up onto her tiptoes- and then Kyo plucked the lollipop from the shelf and handed it to her.

"Here."

"Oh… Thank you," Tamara said. She gave the candy to Kisa, who happily held it close to her with both hands.

Kyo shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets. "It's nothin'."

"That was really nice of you!" Momiji squealed. "Kyo, you're never that nice. Do you have a crush?"

Kyo's cheeks flamed a bright red. "What?! No I do not! You little brat!" He grabbed Momiji and started giving him a noogie.

"Waah! Kyo's hurting me," Momiji whined. Kisa started giggling, and Tamara raised her eyebrows, trying to ignore the little butterflies that were erupting in her stomach.

"That stupid cat," Yuki muttered, watching Kyo's antics from afar. Tohru smiled, taking Yuki's hand. She knew that would help calm him down.

"Aww, look. Our little girl's growing up," Uo sniffed, pointing at Tohru and Yuki. "They're like… a couple."

Tohru blushed. "I, well…"

"Yes, it does appear to be that way," Hana agreed as she perused the Acid Pops and Blood Pops. "But if anyone is worth our Tohru's affections, I would say that Yuki Sohma is a suitable choice. However, if he were ever to break poor Tohru's heart…" The Acid Pop she was holding melted in her hand, and Yuki gulped.

"You don't have to worry about that," Yuki assured Hana nervously. "I… love Miss Honda."

Tohru glanced up at him, pleasantly surprised. "Yuki, that's the first time you've said that in front of other people…"

Yuki smiled at her. "Then perhaps I should say it more often." When they exited the store, the two of them were still holding hands.


	4. New Mates

"All right; well, it's good to see you all here today." Ariel assumed her 'public speaking pose'- hands on the hips, legs slightly apart, and chest puffed out to project her voice (she didn't ever strike the pose on purpose; it just happened.)

Before her were a fair number of Hufflepuffs, ranging from second year to sixth year, short to tall, thin to wide, and it was a good mix of boys and girls. There were several onlookers seated in the stands, too- Ariel knew Tamara was among them.

"We'll start with some warm-up drills, and then I'll split you up into teams and see how well you play." Ariel led them in a few exercises on foot, and then had them do laps while she divided them up. For the first group, her old Chaser, Mickey, would fly with two new people, and another newbie would play as Keeper. The Beaters, Rose and Tyler, would go easy on the Bludgers to give them a fair chance. The second, third, and fourth groups would be much like the first; except Ariel would switch out with Mickey, to give him a breather.

She squinted up at the fliers. There were two girls, second or third years, who could barely fly in a straight line. Ariel mentally cut them from her list and focused on the others. Everyone else was flying fairly well- one kid even threw in a few tricks and flips, to show off. Shaking her head ruefully, Ariel waved them down.

After dismissing the two girls, Ariel sent up the first group and watched from the ground. She didn't notice who was standing next to her until he spoke.

"Oh, an actual tryout… And here I thought you Huffles just let everybody and their grandmother onto the team. Is it true you're so idiotically nice that you _let_ Gryffindor win the cup last year, or are you all just _that _bad at Quidditch?"

Ariel clenched her teeth and took a deep breath. "Do you need something, Akito? Because if not, you know, I'm kind of busy right now."

He smirked lightly and stayed put. "I'm merely spectating. Or is that illegal now?"

"It would be great if you could do so in the stands, where you won't be as much of a distraction."

"So you admit my presence is distracting to you?"

Ariel chose to ignore him and kicked off the ground, leaving Akito in her broomdust.

"Ariel! Hi!"

She blinked at the sight of Momiji, beaming and waving happily, hovering among the second group of fliers. "Oh, um, hi, Momiji. All right, spread out, everyone."

The practice game began, and Ariel immediately noticed, much to her surprise, how well Momiji was doing. He didn't have the speediest broom, but somehow, he was one of the quickest on the field. And, he was scoring goals almost accidentally, but they were great goals.

"Yay!" he cheered after a particularly good shot. "Hi, Tohru!" Momiji waved with both arms at the Hufflepuff section, which made Ariel chuckle.

* * *

Tohru waved back at Momiji. "Wow, he's really good," she said, smiling. "Don't you think?"

Kisa nodded, staring wide-eyed at all of the Quidditch players. Hiro was sitting next to her, with his arms crossed.

"I didn't come here to watch that stupid bunny bounce around in the air. I don't even know why I bothered to sit with you Puffs. I mean, come on, Tohru- do you think, just because I'm a boy, I have to like sports? You can't just assume things like that. I can't believe I let you drag me to these stupid tryouts, anyway. I mean, what's the point? Quidditch doesn't even make sense. Quidditch is boring. Quidditch-"

"I like Quidditch," Kisa said quietly. Hiro shut his mouth.

"I guess it's all right," he muttered after a moment.

Tamara, who was sitting on the other side of Tohru, grinned at Hiro's behavior, with her eyes still on the players. Then she realized something. "Uh, Tohru?"

"Yes?"

"Why did Hiro call Momiji a 'bunny'?" she asked in a whisper.

"Oh! Um, well, you see, it's just a nickname," Tohru began, flustered all of a sudden. "Since, you know, Momiji is so hyper and cute and bouncy, just like a bunny!"

"Oh… ok." Slightly unnerved, Tamara brushed it off and kept watching. It looked like Ariel had narrowed it down to the last few candidates, and was having them score goals with her as the Keeper.

* * *

Ariel waited until those she had dismissed left the Quidditch field before addressing her new recruits. "Good job, everyone. I've chosen you for a combination of skillful flying, good teamwork, and natural playing abilities. Jackie, you'll be our Keeper." Jackie, a fifth year with strawberry blond hair and hazel eyes, nodded happily. "Momiji and Pete, you're our new Chasers. And Rory, you'll be our reserve player. Don't worry, though- you'll get to play more often than you think. Our first Quidditch practice is next Saturday, 8am sharp- your uniforms will be ready by then. If you have any questions, let me know. See you next weekend!"

The new players thanked her as they left, and Ariel was the last to go. She took a nice, hot shower, and then practically ran to dinner, since she had worked up quite the appetite.

"…looked really good up there. I think you did a good job of picking new players- well, obviously you would, since you're so experienced." Tamara paused and tapped Ariel. "Anyone in there?"

It took a moment for Ariel to realize she was talking to her. "Oh… right. Sorry. I guess I'm just tired." She shrugged and picked at her food- usually she would be scarfing down the 'pigs in a blanket with a side of macaroni and cheese', but her appetite was gradually fading.

Tamara noticed something was up. "You sure you're all right?"

"Yes… I'm fine," Ariel insisted. Tamara turned to talk to someone else, and Ariel's attention traveled back to where she had been looking- the Slytherin table.

Akito Sohma was sitting there like he was the emperor of the universe; using his utensils elegantly, and nodding along with the conversation which he was the center of. His dark eyes flitted over to meet Ariel's gaze, and she shuddered involuntarily when his mouth spread slowly into a cat-like smirk.

Ariel stared back down at her plate, heart pounding. Akito had never been a pleasant person; since she was in the same year as him, she had spent a whole 6, almost 7 years around him, and did her best to steer clear of him and his 'friends'. But, he had never really shown too much of an interest in her until sixth year. Akito then began to run into her more often, somehow got partnered with her in nearly every group assignment, and made it his business to bother her at least once a week.

She thought he'd given up this year, since she hadn't seen much of him since the Welcome Feast... but it looked like that was not the case.

* * *

Tamara waved goodbye to a friend and headed back to the Hufflepuff Common Room by herself. Ariel had decided to go to the library, to pick up some books for studying, but Tamara just wanted to chill out. She didn't have too much homework to do, and she had all of Sunday to get it finished.

Lost in thought, she almost bumped into someone, who had to swerve to narrowly avoid knocking against her.

"Hey! Watch where you're- oh." Kyo stepped back and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Sorry."

"It's okay." Tamara smiled awkwardly at him, realizing dazedly that she was almost his height. "Um."

They were both still standing there, looking at each other.

"Well," Tamara began.

"…See ya," Kyo muttered, ducking his head and turning away. "Wait-" he looked back at her. "What's your name again?"

"Tamara." She blinked uncomfortably.

"Oh, yeah. Ok." Kyo walked quickly away. Tamara shrugged and continued on to the common room.

Thankfully, it was pretty empty, so she just curled up on one of the couches and started reading.

Ariel walked in a few hours later to find Tamara, asleep by the fireplace. Smiling, she pulled a blanket over her and plodded upstairs, to collapse in her own bed.

* * *

"…the Goblin Wars…"

Tamara groaned quietly and imagined banging her head against the desk. She kind of liked the actual subject of History of Magic- but she detested listening to Professor Binns drone on and on. She would much rather read about it, or watch a TV documentary. Too bad there was no Muggle technology at Hogwarts.

The only class she hated more was Arithmancy, which was also Ariel's least favorite class. It did make sense, but it was hard and a bit boring. Tamara had opted out of Divination after suffering through it during third year. At least she had Care of Magical Creatures next.

Finally, class ended, and she practically bolted outside. The crisp, fresh air was a nice change from the stuffy HOM classroom.

"Tamara, wait up!" Momiji skipped over to her. "Hey, isn't it beautiful today? I could just sing!" He started humming a tune as they walked- it was a little ditty that suited him well. In fact, Tamara secretly thought it would make a great theme song for him; if people, you know, had theme songs.

Hagrid waited until they were all gathered in front of his hut before rubbing his hands together. "I've got a real treat for yeh today," he said happily. Some of the students muttered uneasily, knowing very well what a "treat" to Hagrid could mean.

He opened the door to his hut, and a wave of puppies ran out, immediately jumping on the fourth year Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors; licking, wagging forked tails, and barking.

Tamara got bowled over by three of them, and the whole class was laughing, enjoying the energetic canines' sweetness and cuteness.

"They're Crup pups!" Hagrid exclaimed. "Take some time to get ter know them, an' then yeh can tell me what you think at the end of class."

* * *

Ariel handed in her Ancient Runes assignment, and thanked the teacher as she left the classroom. It was the last class of the day, and tomorrow was the first Quidditch match of the season- against Slytherin, of course. She was feeling a bit tense, and full of nervous energy, so she dropped off her school supplies in her dorm and went for a jog around the grounds, then a short flight on the field.

Akito watched her silently from the castle window he was standing at. The corner of his mouth tugged into a smirk as he walked away.


	5. The First Encounter

[**A/N:** Thanks to ZestyPeriwinkle for the awesome review! I'll do my best to keep frequently updating this story :)]

* * *

Ariel glanced down at the Hufflepuff section and waved at where she thought Tamara, Tohru, and Kisa might be sitting. The whole section let out a cheer, which was soon drowned out by hisses from the Slytherins.

She rolled her eyes at the immaturity of the Slytherins and concentrated instead on Madam Hooch, who was about to release the Quaffle. "I expect a civilized, clean game," she shouted, staring pointedly at the Slytherin team's Captain, who was also one of their Beaters. He grinned and shrugged his shoulders. Madam Hooch narrowed her eyes and tossed up the Quaffle, then blew her whistle.

Ariel could distantly hear cheers, hisses, and the match's commentator, but she mostly tuned everything out and focused on the field. Her eyes darted around in an effort to find the Snitch, and she flew a little higher, to get out of the way of the rest of the players.

She caught sight of a golden glint fluttering by one of the goalposts, but there were too many Slytherins in the area, and their Seeker didn't seem to notice it. By the time the coast was clear, the Snitch had moved on. Ariel grimaced and glanced down at the scoreboard- Slytherin was only leading 50-30. They still had a chance.

* * *

Tamara squinted up at the Quidditch field in an effort to spot her sister, adjusting her glasses with one hand. She finally saw her after a moment- Ariel was a yellow and black blob soaring above the rest of the players. Tamara grimaced- what she wouldn't give for some of those Muggle contact lenses her sister used; although, there should be a spell for that. If wizards could straighten teeth and teleport, they should be able to correct poor vision.

"Yayyyyy! Gooo, everyone!" Momiji shouted from his broom, waving at her and her companions from his position in the field. Tamara cringed slightly at his behavior, but smiled and waved back.

Beside her, Tohru Honda wrung her hands together- an impressive feat, since Kisa was clinging to one of her arms. "Oh, this is so exciting! I just hope no one gets hurt," Tohru fretted. Kisa didn't say anything, but she seemed to be interested in the game.

Hufflepuff scored 40 points in a row, bringing the score to 70-50, in favor of Hufflepuff. Then, the Slytherins started playing dirty. The crowd gasped as two of the Slytherin Chasers cornered a Hufflepuff Chaser who had caught hold of the Quaffle and knocked him flying into the stands while one of them seized the ball. Then a Slytherin Beater distracted the Hufflepuff Keeper so Slytherin could score.

* * *

Ariel cursed under her breath as she watched the fouls that were taking place. They weren't bad enough to warrant penalties- which sucked-so she started searching for the Snitch in earnest, occasionally ducking a Bludger aimed her way. She finally spotted it flitting about midway down the field, closer to the Slytherin Seeker than to her, but he hadn't spotted it yet.

Thinking quickly, Ariel decided to make a fake attempt in the other direction and sped off, away from the Snitch. It worked, and the other Seeker sped towards her as quickly as possible. Ariel kept a steady course, going straight for the edge of the field as if the Snitch was hanging about near the Gryffindor banners. At the last second, she wheeled around and rocketed towards the Snitch's actual location, and the Slytherin Seeker barreled straight into the banners and got entangled in them.

The other Slytherins noticed what was going on, and two of their Chasers, along with a Beater, started following her. Ariel kicked it into high gear, thankful that the Snitch hadn't moved far, and relying highly on her Firebolt's speed. Glancing back, she saw that the Beater was swinging his bat and closing in on her, but she was only a few seconds away from victory. She reached out a hand, fingertips brushing against the Snitch's golden wings…

And then she got the wind knocked out of her. As she tumbled to the ground, hanging onto her broom with one hand, Ariel realized the second Beater had been closing in on her from above and sent a well-aimed Bludger right at her ribs. She let go of the broom landed hard on her left arm, rolling in the dirt, and the crowd groaned as she finally came to a stop, lying painfully on her back. Circling above her, the Slytherins were jeering and high-fiving each other.

Ariel started to black out, but she felt something fluttering in her right hand. Right before she faded out of consciousness, she held up her hand weakly, and the crowd erupted into cheers.

"…has caught the …earned 150 points! Huffle… has won the game!"

* * *

Ariel woke with a start. Squinting as her eyes adjusted to the soft lights of what she recognized as the hospital wing, she put her hands out to her sides and leaned onto her elbows so she could prop herself up.

"Don't even think about getting up," said a low, smooth male voice. Ariel's heart jumped in surprise- she'd thought she was alone.

The person who had spoken set down a clipboard he was reading and sat down at a chair beside her bed. Ariel was a little shocked to see that it was the extremely handsome man who had been sitting at the teachers' table during the beginning-of-the-year feast. She'd assumed he was a new teacher for the first years, or something, since she hadn't seen him very much around the school.

"I'm Doctor Hatori Sohma." He regarded her carefully with deep emerald green eyes, one of which was partially hidden behind his dark bangs. "I must commend you on making such an excellent catch."

Ariel smiled and giggled nervously. "You mean the Snitch, or the Bludger?" It was her lame attempt at a joke. But her smile instantly faltered, and she winced- her lip was split pretty badly. The doctor didn't so much as chuckle at her quip, which made her feel kind of stupid.

"Let me take care of that," he said quietly. He produced his wand, a fairly long one made of pine, from his coat pocket and held it gently against her mouth. "_Episkey."_ Ariel's lip felt instantly better. While he was at it, he healed something in her left arm. "It was fractured," he said simply. "I'll need to take a look at your ribs, as well."

As he spoke, she realized there was a dull ache in her right side, where the Bludger had barreled into her. Hatori carefully removed the right sleeve of her Quidditch robes and lifted up the shirt she wore underneath. While he gently probed her ribs with his fingers- a sensation that was slightly painful, but gave her tingles of excitement at his touch- she watched him curiously. He was so unbelievably good-looking, but there seemed to be something behind his expression- a deep sadness of sorts, or some kind of sorrowful pain.

"Er…" He paused for a second, and Ariel looked down when she felt a slight tugging at her navel, not unlike the Disapparating sensation. She blushed with major embarrassment when she realized his sleeve was caught on her belly button ring, which had a clear gem and a dangly charm of a Golden Snitch that was Charmed to flutter its wings like the real deal. It took him a second to disentangle himself, and then a few minutes passed while he healed her ribs, one by one.

"You may go," Hatori said as he stood up and walked towards a cabinet. "Take this potion in doses of one teaspoon a day for the next four days. If you feel any pain after that, come and see me." The doctor produced a small vial of a purplish draught from one of the cabinets and handed it to Ariel.

"Thank you," she said politely, and gave him a small curtsy. On her way out of the hospital wing, she mentally smacked herself. A curtsy?! Really?

* * *

Hatori watched the Hufflepuff student walk smoothly out of the room with a pensive expression on his face. A small smile slowly spread across his lips once she was gone. _"You mean the Snitch, or the Bludger?"_ She was so lithe and graceful on the Quidditch field, and almost unapproachably beautiful, yet she was surprisingly easygoing and personable. The girl was even prettier up close, and her body was so well-built and slender… And she had even bobbed him a curtsy. How adorable was that?

He shook his head in an effort to clear his mind of her. How improper of him, to allow himself to even be a little bit attracted to a student. If Shigure knew what kinds of thoughts he was thinking about her, he'd never hear the end of it. Besides, he had already failed beyond repair in the only relationship he'd ever had. Hatori felt as though he didn't ever deserve another chance at love.

* * *

Ariel had a slight spring in her step as she headed down the halls. Dark green… His eyes were dark green. And his name was Hatori- Hatori _Sohma_. Did that mean he was related to Momiji and Yuki and all them? She'd have to ask. In fact, she might even ask how many Sohmas were at Hogwarts altogether- they seemed to be a much bigger family than she had ever noticed over the years. It seemed like, every few minutes, another one showed up.


	6. Practically Purrfect

A few days after the Quidditch incident, Tamara found herself strolling down the hallway after dinner. She thought she might go for a walk outside, or pop in at the library. She was just deciding what to do when she saw a Gryffindor boy standing by himself, looking around with a dazed expression.

"Uh… Are you all right?" she asked.

The boy, who had punk-style white hair with black undertones, blinked at her. "I… I'm trying to find the common room."

Tamara regarded him carefully. He could be messing with her- she recognized him to be a Gryffindor student in her year. Clearly he would know where his own House's common room was. But he did look genuinely confused…

"Do you want me to help you get there?"

"…Yes, please."

Tamara led him a ways down the hall, over several winding staircases, and up to the Gryffindor Tower. She wasn't even in that House, yet she knew where it was, and how to get there. "You're Hatsuharu, right?"

"Yes. Most people just call me Haru, though." They walked on in silence until they reached the painting of the Fat Lady.

"Here we are," Tamara announced.

"Thank you," Haru began. Just then, the portrait hole slid open, and a small orange cat bolted out.

"Oh, how cute…" Tamara knelt down and held out a hand. The cat stared at her hand tentatively, and then came a little closer. Tamara took the opportunity to scratch it behind the ears, and it started to purr. "Is he yours?"

Haru was looking at the cat with a strange expression. "Oh, no… He just, um, turns up every now and then."

"Oh. Okay. Well, bye."

Tamara waved, and Haru thanked her once more as she trotted away down the stairs. Then he shooed the cat into the common room and shut the door. It was a good thing that no one else was around, because just then, the cat transformed back into Kyo.

"And just what were you doing, skulking around in your cat form?" Haru asked drolly.

"None of your business," Kyo said hotly.

"I didn't know you could purr…"

"Shut up! I was not purring!" Kyo yelled, his cheeks reddening. "Besides, what the hell was Tamara doing up here anyway? She's a Hufflepuff!"

"She helped me find my way back here," Haru told him. "I couldn't find it on my own."

"Of course not, you brainless idiot," Kyo muttered. "You can't even find your way to the bathroom."

"Did you just call me an idiot?" Haru seethed, his eyes growing a little darker, from grey to black.

"Damn right I did!"

"Oh, it is on!"

The two tackled each other and started fighting.

* * *

_It's Friday_, Ariel kept reminding herself mentally. _You can handle this_. Potions was her last class of the day, and it was dragging on even longer than usual. Ariel just really wanted to get out into the sunshine- she felt as if the dungeons were draining her energy. Or maybe even her life force.

"…and Akito with Ariel."

"What?!" Ariel sat up straight. She had only heard the last part of what Snape said- something about her and Akito?

"In the future, Miss Tahl, it would behoove you to actually pay attention when I am describing an assignment, and assigning partners for it. 10 points from Hufflepuff, for not listening."

Ariel groaned inwardly, but didn't complain, since she knew that would just make it worse. Instead, she did her best to avoid looking in Akito's direction, because she could feel his eyes burning into her skin.

* * *

"It's a lovely day out," Yuki said calmly to Tohru as they walked along the edge of the lake after classes were done for the day.

"Yes, it is." Tohru squirmed a little uncomfortably. It felt like there was something wriggling in her shirt. Yuki kissed her gently on the cheek.

"Are you all right?" he asked, concerned. Tohru stopped walking, distracted.

"Umm…"

A silver snake popped its head out of the collar of her shirt. "Why, hello!" it exclaimed. "I do hope I'm not interrupting anything."

An awkward silence followed.

"You're sick," Yuki hissed, grabbing the snake by the neck and pulling it out of Tohru's shirt. "What do you want, Aya?"

"Oh, leave him alone- it's not his fault," Shigure insisted, bounding over to them in his black dog form. "That mean old Snivellus Snape wouldn't let us in at the front gate when we asked nicely, so we had to transform and sneak in the back way, as animals." He licked Tohru's hand before morphing back into human form. "You know very well that Aya will die if he doesn't get human warmth whenever he's in his Animagus form, since he's coldblooded."

"Sss, I'm a snaaaake," Aya choked out, flicking his tongue. Yuki relaxed his grip on Aya, who transformed back into himself. "Dearest brother, you have quite a strong right hand there," Aya quipped, waggling his eyebrows.

"Shigure, Aya! It's so nice to see you," Tohru said sweetly, oblivious to Ayame's blatant inappropriateness.

"You still haven't said why you're here," Yuki said warily, keeping his eyes on Aya.

"To pay Hatori a visit, of course! It's not every day you find out that your cousin got hired as the head doctor of your old school, you know. Wow, I haven't been on this campus since our graduation," Shigure said nostalgically. "Come along, Aya; let's get out of their hair."

"It really was a pleasure seeing you again," Aya said grandly, bowing to Tohru. "We must do it again sometime."

Yuki glowered at them until they were gone. Then he sighed. "I'm sorry about that…"

"It's okay," Tohru assured him, looking up into his eyes. "I really don't mind."

"I just think it's so inappropriate for Aya to crawl into your clothes and get so close to you. The only one who should be able to do that is me," Yuki mumbled. Then he turned bright red. "I-I didn't mean right now! Or anytime soon! Miss Honda, I…"

Tohru giggled nervously. "I know."

* * *

Ariel paused outside of the Hospital Wing's entrance, heart pounding into her throat. She really didn't need more medication; she was healing up just fine, with almost no pain. But somehow her feet had led her back here. She just really wanted to see Hatori again.

She shifted from foot to foot for what seemed like ages before giving up sadly and turning around. Ariel padded down the hallway and continued on towards the Great Hall.

Hatori opened the door and looked around. He'd had the strangest feeling that someone was there, but he supposed he must have been incorrect. He shut the door and went back towards his desk, pouring himself a cup of tea. "What did you two want again?"

"Come now, Tori, must you assume we're here because we want something?" Aya tsked at him.

"Yeah, can't we just be here to visit our very best friend? You wound, me Tori," Shigure sighed dramatically, flopping onto one of the hospital beds.

Hatori just sipped his cup of tea and regarded them coolly.

"All right; you've got us. While we _were_ planning for a visit, something else came to our attention that we thought you should know about." Aya's tone of voice softened a little and he pulled out an envelope. "They're Kana's wedding pictures… It's up to you, whether or not you want to look at them."

"So, then…" Hatori set down his cup of tea and took a breath. "Kana's gotten married."

"If I'd had my way, we would have told you about this much sooner," Aya sniffed. "I wanted you to go to that wedding and steal her away from that idiot of a fiancé! But Shigure stopped me from saying anything."

"There's nothing I could have done," Hatori said quietly. "It was Kana's choice to erase her own memory. She was the one who cast me away. I let her go, because I love her… And they say that if something you love never returns to you, then it was never yours in the first place. So… here." He pushed the envelope back towards Aya.

Aya's eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Well, I, for one, can't tolerate this. You're my friend, so I realize my opinion is biased- but even so; what she's done to you, it's unacceptable! I can't stand it. Kana's able to find happiness now because she chose to forget. Meanwhile, she's left you to carry the burden of the past alone. She left you behind to suffer with the memories of her."

"That's how it appears," Hatori said softly. "But… you're wrong."

"Ah, you're much more forgiving than I am," Aya said heartily. "That's always been one of the qualities I admire about you- but it's also the reason you suffer so much more than you have to. I don't think I want you to get Kana back! I want you to find someone who will make you happy for the rest of your life. I want you to be a thousand- no, ten thousand times happier than Kana ever will be- that is what you deserve!"

"You know… You should try being this determined with your brother," Hatori said wryly.

"Really? Do you think so?" Aya tugged at his own hair and gave that a thought. He really _did_ need a new strategy, when it came to getting more acquainted and friendly with Yuki.

"You'll find someone, someday," Shigure said kindly. "Someone who lifts your spirit; even when you're apart- but whose greatest gift to you will be staying together."

"Ohh… Spoken like a true poet!" Aya exclaimed.

"Novelist, novelist," Shigure insisted, abashed.

Hatori turned to file away some papers he had left on his desk. A small smile came to his face when he thought once more of Ariel's sweet laugh. A new love… That may be more than he could realistically hope for. But perhaps there was always a reason to hope.

"What are you smiling about?" Shigure asked suspiciously.

"Oh… Nothing." Hatori picked up his cup of tea and sipped.

* * *

[**A/N:** 10 coolness points to whoever can spot the AVPSY reference! And yes, I know the dialogue concerning Kana's wedding was almost a direct quote; but I felt as though I couldn't word it any better. Rate/Review!]


	7. Squeak, Squeak

Hana transfigured her dinner plate into a mushroom with almost no effort at all.

"Good work, Miss Hanajima," Professor McGonagall said in passing. She paused at Uo's desk, glancing down at the mushroom-shaped pepperoni pizza that had replaced her dinner plate. "Ah… May I ask what that is supposed to be, Miss Uotani?"

"It's a mushroom," Uo said bluntly. She picked off a piece of the crust and chomped down. "Well, sort of," she said with her mouth full. "Guess I must be hungry."

"Hmm… I expect more from you," the professor said, moving on to the next student's desk. Although, McGonagall admitted to herself, she was glad to have such a creative student- even though Arisa wasn't exactly the hardest worker in the class.

Kyo scoffed at her from across the room, and Uo stuck her tongue out at him. She yawned and scarfed down the rest of the pizza when the teacher wasn't looking. Then, when class ended, she joined Hana on the way to lunch.

"Hoo, I'm starving," Uo groaned, rubbing her stomach.

Hana smiled. "Yes. I bet you are." They ran into Tohru, who was leaving the Arithmancy classroom amidst a flood of fifth-year Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. "Oh, look- it is our dear sweet Tohru."

"Hana, Uo! It's good to see you," Tohru exclaimed. "Wow, I feel like I hardly see you two anymore."

"Yeah… We should fix that," Uo said, hopping over a trick step on the staircase. "Hang out this weekend, or something."

"That is an excellent idea," Hana agreed solemnly.

"Okay!" Tohru smiled happily. "Maybe we should get everyone together for a picnic out by the lake! I might be able to get some spare food from the kitchens, if the house-elves don't mind. They usually have some leftovers that they leave out for Hufflepuffs who are looking for a snack. Oh, and we could play games and tell stories… What do you think?"

"Sounds great to me!" Uo stretched out her arms as they reached the Great Hall. "Mm, lunchtime. See you guys later."

"See you!" Tohru went to the Hufflepuff table, while the other two headed to their respective Houses' tables. She sat next to Momiji, who was sitting with Kisa and Tamara. "Hello! Hana and Uo and I were thinking that we should all have a picnic this weekend- probably Saturday afternoon. W0uld you be interested?"

"Of course!" Momiji crowed, knocking over an empty goblet with a grand arm gesture. "We can call it Tohru and Momiji's Saturday Picnic Celebration Day!"

Tohru giggled. "Okay, we can call it that. How about you two?"

Kisa nodded with a small smile. Across from her, Tamara blinked, glancing at Tohru. "Oh, did you mean me, too?"

"Of course! You're our friend, too," Tohru told her. "If you and Ariel want to come, you're more than welcome to."

"Cool. It sounds like fun," Tamara said, grinning. "It's been a long time since I've been to a picnic."

* * *

After lunch, Kisa waved goodbye to them and walked quietly by herself to Defense Against the Dark Arts. Before she got there, she was cornered by a small group of Slytherin and Ravenclaw first years who had given her trouble before.

"Hey, look, it's the mousy girl," one of them, a skinny blonde, sniffed.

"Say something," a short boy taunted. "Why don't you squeak, mouse girl?"

"Her hair is so bright… It hurts my eyes!" one of them complained. She knocked Kisa's books out of her hands, and they clattered to the floor.

"Yeah, maybe we should… cut it off!" the first girl suggested. "Would that make you squeak, mouse?" She stepped closer to Kisa and twirled a lock of her hair in her fingers. "We should make you a bald mousy."

"Leave her alone," someone shouted. Everyone turned to see Hiro at the end of the hall, with his wand pointed at the blondie.

"Make me," she hissed, pulling Kisa's hair. Hiro's eyes narrowed, and he yelled a spell at her.

"Furnunculus!"

The blond girl was thrown backwards by the force, and she sat up, staring at her hands, which were now covered in boils. "Ewww! Get out of my way!" She shoved her way through the crew, who ran after her in a huff, rather than face Hiro with their own wands.

When they were gone, Hiro walked over to Kisa, who was looking at him with big eyes. "You know, you shouldn't let people treat you like that," he muttered. "Even if you don't want to say anything… you can still fight back."

Kisa didn't reply. She just brushed some loose hair behind her ear and picked up her books from the floor. Then, she suddenly kissed Hiro on the cheek, and ran away. Hiro stood there for a moment, dazed, before running after her.

* * *

Ariel sighed on her way to the Prefects' bathroom. She was so glad that Quidditch Captains were allowed to use it- at the moment, nothing sounded better to her than a hot, steamy, scented bath by herself. And, she'd definitely be by herself, because all of the female Prefects, Captains, and the Head Girl had classes during the first class period; she was the only one who had it free.

When she got there, Yuki was standing outside of the boys' entrance, coughing terribly and holding his stomach. "Oh, geez… Are you okay, Yuki?"

He cleared his throat and took a deep breath. "Yes, I'm fine. Don't worry about me, Miss Tahl."

"Okay then…" Slightly worried, Ariel went in to the girls' side and took her much-needed bath.

When she got out of the bath, there was a crash outside. It startled her into slipping on the bathwater. She caught herself, but flipped her ankle in the process. "Crap…" Ariel tested her weight on her right foot. She could walk, but it definitely hurt. Maybe she should get it checked out. In fact, this was a perfect chance for her to visit the Hospital Wing- and Hatori!

Ariel exited the bathroom and looked around for the source of the crashing noise. There didn't seem to be anyone there. She squinted, noticing a small shape near the bottom of the boys' door. Kneeling carefully, she picked it up- it was a small grey mouse, cold to the touch, but still breathing. Ariel's eyes filled with tears. Sometimes she wished she wasn't so tenderhearted.

She held it close within her jacket, in her hands, until it grew a bit warmer. Ariel sat down and petted the mouse gently on its head, to see if it would wake up. After what seemed like forever, it did. The mouse had startlingly purple eyes that stared tiredly up at Ariel.

Ariel spread out a spare towel she'd been carrying, which was still dry and fluffy, and set the mouse down on it. She fished out a roll she had saved from breakfast and broke off some crumbs, setting them beside the mouse. It squeaked, and nibbled on a piece of the roll for a moment. Then it scurried backwards, off of the towel… and transformed into Yuki Sohma.

Ariel's heart skipped a beat in panic, before she realized he was an Animagus and calmed down. "Oh, it's you… Are you okay?"

"I…" Yuki coughed again, drawing his sweater closer around his shoulders. "I suppose I'm not. I'm sorry for startling you. As you can see, I'm an Animagus… but I'm unregistered. Please, don't tell anyone."

"Of course I won't," Ariel promised. "Um, you passed out…"

"I know." Yuki grimaced, holding his stomach again. "I have a bad case of asthma, and I was going to take a steam bath to help soothe my bronchial tubes. I… didn't make it in time before transforming. You see, I was born with the Animagus ability, and sometimes I can't control it- for example, when my body is under a great deal of stress or pain."

"I see… We should get you to the Hospital Wing," Ariel insisted, standing up. A shooting pain went through her ankle, and she gasped. She had forgotten about her own injury. "Come on."

"Are you sure you don't mind?"

"I was headed there, anyway. It's no trouble." Ariel helped Yuki through the halls and down the stairs, pausing whenever he had a coughing fit. They finally made it, and Hatori looked up when the door opened.

"Oh… hello," Hatori said, setting down a chart he had been holding. "Yuki. What's wrong?"

"It's his asthma," Ariel said softly, letting Yuki lean on her while she helped him sit down on an empty bed. Hatori nodded and took out his stethoscope, holding it against Yuki's chest. Ariel stepped back, wincing at her throbbing ankle, while Hatori took care of Yuki, giving him a potion and making him lie down.

"He'll be fine," Hatori assured her. "Thanks to you getting him here, that is. He might have fared a lot worse, if not for you."

"Oh… I'm glad to have been helpful," Ariel said, biting her lip.

"How are your injuries healing up?" Hatori asked as he poured a dose into a cup and set it beside Yuki's bed.

"They're fine. Well, they're great, actually. But today, I…" she gestured at her ankle, which was visibly swollen. "Kind of twisted this."

Hatori motioned for her to sit down on a bed and take off her shoe and sock, which she did so. He muttered a quick spell, which took away the swelling, and then rummaged in a cabinet for a small pain remedy. "Here. Drink this."

Ariel obliged, and downed the tiny vial in one gulp. Instantly, her foot stopped hurting. "Wow… Thank you," she said, replacing her sock and shoe.

"You're welcome." Hatori went over to Yuki to check his temperature- he was sleeping. "You should be more careful. I… wouldn't want you to get hurt." Hatori paused, realizing what he'd just said. He cleared his throat awkwardly. "Ahem."

"Uh…" Ariel stepped towards the door. "Guess I'll go. Thanks again."

"You're welcome."

Once she got to the hallway, Ariel realized what time it was. "Crap." She raced down the steps two at a time to grab her bookbag from her dorm, and then bolted out of there to get to the dungeons. She was ten minutes late, and she edged inside the classroom, tiptoeing.

"How wonderful. You've decided to join us," Professor Snape deadpanned, turning his back to her. He wrote something down on the board he was using to teach the class. "Detention, Miss Tahl. And twenty points will be taken for your tardiness."

Ariel grimaced and went over towards her empty desk.

"Not today," Snape interrupted her before she sat down. "If you were using your brain, which I note you are not, you would see that all of the other students are sitting with their assigned partners. Perhaps you should do the same."

_Perhaps you should pull that stick out of your butt,_ Ariel wanted to say. Clenching her teeth, she stalked over to Akito and sat on the edge of the seat beside him. Ariel pulled out her notes and started working on the antidote they were supposed to be brewing. Akito already had all of the ingredients on their desk, including a cauldron.

Akito was crushing a root into a powder. He had the knife on his other side, so Ariel had to reach across him to get it, since she wouldn't let herself ask him to hand it to her. Akito paused in his work and watched Ariel take the knife.

"Feeling a bit tense, are you?" he said in his quiet, silky voice. Ariel didn't answer as she chopped up some leaves in a jerky, clipped fashion. "I could help you with that."

Ariel's knuckles turned white, but she continued to ignore him. First he was rude and annoying, then he was creepy and weird, and now he was trying to flirt with her? What the heck? All she could do was try to ignore his comments and avoid him whenever it was possible to do so.


	8. A Starry Night and a Sunny Morning

"Look, Tamara… there are so many stars," Momiji whispered. They were sharing a telescope for Astronomy class.

"There sure are," she agreed, looking up in awe. "Stars are so amazing. We see the light that they gave off thousands of years ago, and it's still bright and beautiful, and it swirls through the blackness and the blueness of the sky with an almost magical quality." She paused, embarrassed. "Sorry, that sentence got away from me."

"It's all right," Momiji laughed. "That was really poetic!" He gazed up at the sky again. "My sister likes the stars, too," he said softly.

"Oh? I didn't know you had a sister," Tamara said, jotting down some stars on her chart. "What's she like?"

"Well… she's not magical," Momiji said, looking down at his chart. He smiled sadly. "She doesn't know I'm a wizard."

Tamara glanced at Momiji. He was being more serious and less cheery than she had ever seen him before.

"Actually… She doesn't even know I'm her brother."

Tamara stayed quiet. She had a feeling he needed to talk about this.

"My mom's a Muggle, and my dad's a wizard," Momiji began, doodling something on the side of his chart. "But my mom didn't know about his magical life. He told her after my sister was born, when I got my acceptance letter to Hogwarts. She didn't want to believe it… She got so angry at my dad. She was so upset that it started affecting her health, and my dad couldn't bear it. He used a memory charm on her, and made her forget that he was a wizard, and forget that they were ever married.

"She moved away, taking Momo with her. Momo's my sister's nickname." He sighed lightly, looking through the telescope again. "I still get to visit them during the holidays… but Momo thinks I'm her cousin, not her brother. My mom has no idea who I really am."

Tamara felt a lump rising in her throat. Not caring if Professor Sinistra or any of the other students saw, she grabbed Momiji and wrapped him in a tight hug. When they pulled apart, Momiji's eyes were shining, but he was smiling. "You're a good friend, Tamara."

"So are you, Momiji." Tamara patted his curly head before continuing her assignment.

* * *

The weekend finally arrived, and so did the nicely-planned picnic that Tohru had set up. Ariel, Tamara, and most of the Sohmas gathered beside the lake for food, games, and catching up. Uo started a game of volleyball, which she had to explain to everyone who wasn't part Muggle, and Tohru sat with Kisa and Momiji and a big basket of food. Haru, Ariel, and Rin joined them, while everyone else played volleyball.

"So I heard you got detention for defending Kisa from some bullies in the hall the other day," Haru said solemnly. There was a moment of awkward silence as all eyes turned to Hiro.

He folded his arms. "Yeah, so what? They were asking for it. Nobody should treat Kisa- I mean, anyone, like that. It's just an outlet for people who have zero self-esteem and nothing better to do. Those kids are pathetic. I'd curse 'em again any day. It's not a big deal." Hiro was pointedly avoiding Kisa's gaze. "Come on, are we going to do something fun or just sit here and blab all day? I didn't come to this stupid thing to get my ears talked off."

Tamara eyed the volleyball as it finally came her way. She stepped forward- right as Kyo stepped sideways. "Oof!" They crashed into each other and fell down, while the ball bounced once and rolled to a stop in the bushes.

"Nice save," Yuki said drily. Kyo scrambled to his feet and brushed off his shoulders. "What, couldn't you be a gentleman for once?'" Yuki asked, gesturing to Tamara, who stood up on her own. "Oh, wait- I must have you confused with someone else... stupid cat."

"Shut up, you damn rat!" Kyo yelled, his face turning red. He glanced at Tamara, who was watching him, slightly unnerved. "Uh…" Kyo slowly returned to his normal color as he ruffled his hair nervously. "Sorry. You okay?"

"Yeah." Tamara brushed herself off and went to retrieve the ball.

"Such interesting waves," Hana said dreamily.

Ariel watched the exchange, full of curiosity. For some reason, Yuki had referred to Kyo as a cat… and Kyo called Yuki a rat. Since Yuki actually_ was_ able to turn into a mouse, did that mean Kyo was also an Animagus- a cat? She looked around briefly. Perhaps it was a family thing, and some of the other Sohmas were born with the same ability. She chuckled- that would certainly explain a few things, such as Haru's natural black and white hair coloring. Maybe he was a panda or something.

She got distracted by a tiny little bluebird that starting flitting around through the trees. It chirped happily as it flew by. Ariel had just gotten started on a particularly rich piece of chocolate cream pie (after a savory sandwich and several delightfully fresh fruits and veggies) when Momiji hopped over to her.

"Ariel! They're going to start another game of volleyball. Would you like to play too?"

"Sure," Ariel said, smiling. Even though she didn't want to leave her pie, she couldn't say no to the sweet little golden-haired boy. She chomped down another big spoonful and stood up to go join the game.

Most of the players switched out: whoever had already been playing sat down to eat, and vice versa- except for Yuki and Kyo, who seemed like they were trying to outlast each other. Haru trotted over to Yuki's side with Ariel and Kisa, and Momiji and Tohru joined Kyo.

"What the hell?! That's not fair!" Kyo shouted. "You have one more person than we do."

"Afraid you can't beat a team that has two girls on it?" Haru asked, smirking. Steam practically came out of Kyo's ears as he tried to think of a response.

"It would be even if Hiro played," Ariel pointed out nonchalantly.

"What, you just draft me into the game without even checking to see if I _want_ to play? What ever happened to democracy? What ever happened to freedom of choice?" Hiro stayed where he was sitting, folding his arms stubbornly. "What if I don't want to play? Why can't Rin play instead?"

"Rin doesn't have to play if she doesn't want to," Haru said in a low tone. Rin smiled gratefully up at him from her seat on the picnic blanket- she wasn't exactly very athletic, and she had a fairly low level of endurance.

"Hiro, please play," Kisa said quietly.

Without another word, Hiro stood up and went over next to Kyo.

"Finally- we can get this started again! Best 7 out of 10," Kyo said, glaring at Yuki as if it were a one-on-0ne competition.

"Is that what we're playing? And here I was under the impression that you were just letting me win," Yuki said drolly.

"Shut up!" Kyo launched the ball into the air and began the game.

"You know, for some reason, carrot-top always calms down when you're near him," Uo said slyly to Tamara, who froze in the middle of eating a tomato slice. "I wonder why that might be?"

"Yes, it is most peculiar," Hana said distantly, watching the volleyball game. Kagura glanced from her to Kyo, and then at Tamara.

"Oh, really?! Just what are you trying to suggest?" Kagura prodded.

"They're not suggesting anything," Tamara insisted, embarrassed. She knew that Kagura and Kyo had had a thing a few years back (more like Kagura had been obsessed with Kyo, and he had done everything he could to get away from her). Since most of the Sohmas were so distantly related, it wasn't weird for them to be interested in each other- for example, Haru and Rin, or Kisa and Hiro. But Tamara still thought you shouldn't keep pursuing someone who had absolutely no interest in you.

"Relax, kiddos, I'm just teasing you," Uo said warmly. She shook some potato crisps into her mouth, directly from the bag.

Tamara was about to say something else when she got interrupted by a loud cry of pain.

"Aughh!" Ariel fell to the ground, cradling her left hand to her chest.

"Holy crap, are you okay?" Kyo exclaimed, wincing.

"She would be perfectly fine if you hadn't spiked the ball directly at her hand," Hiro said drily. Everyone crowded around her.

"Miss Tahl, are you all right?" Yuki asked. "Do you need ice?"

"…I think it's broken," Ariel said, grimacing.

"Oh, no! We need to get you to the hospital wing right away," Tohru exclaimed, flustered. "Shall I go with you?"

"No, it's okay," Ariel assured her, standing up. "I can get there on my own. I don't want to disrupt the picnic any further- please, I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" Momiji asked.

"Yep. Don't worry about me; just keep having fun." She went inside, and everyone slowly went back to their activities."

"Now it's uneven again. Guess I'll stop playing," Hiro scoffed, sitting down beneath a tree.

* * *

Ariel's heart fluttered nervously as she knocked lightly on the door to the hospital wing with her good hand. The doctor opened it, looking at her with an indiscernible expression.

"Looks like I'm back again," Ariel quipped, giving Hatori an earnest grin. The doctor's expression softened, and he almost smiled.

"Yes… If I didn't know any better, I would almost think that you're getting hurt on purpose."

Ariel scoffed. "As if I would stoop to that level… I'm just this clumsy by nature." Hatori held out his hand, and Ariel sat on one of the hospital wing's beds, extending her broken wrist for him to examine.

"And how did this happen?"

"Volleyball game." She watched his face while he pulled up a chair and inspected her fingers, probing gently at the delicate wrist bones. "Ow!" she said suddenly as Hatori found the source of the break. "Ow…"

"Sorry," Hatori apologized in that low, calm tone of his. He pulled out his wand and pressed it against her wrist. A warm feeling spread throughout her hand as the bones knitted back together. "I can prescribe a painkiller for you to take, but it shouldn't hurt for more than another day or two," he said, still holding her hand.

Ariel didn't say anything, so he looked up at her. She realized with embarrassment that he had just caught her in the act of staring intently at him.

"I…" Hatori blinked and tilted his head ever so slightly. Time seemed to slow down, and for a mesmerizing moment, their gazes remained locked. Then the distance between them disappeared, and their lips came together.

Hatori's free hand brushed lightly against Ariel's cheek as their kiss deepened; and then, he suddenly pulled away from her. "I'm… I'm sorry." He averted his eyes and stood quickly, turning away. "Please go."

Ariel's lower lip trembled, and she opened her mouth to say something, but decided against it. She stood up and walked slowly to the door, and started running as soon as she left the room. The only thing faster than the sound of her footsteps was the rhythm of her heartbeat.


	9. Daily Struggles

[**A/N:** Hooray for a new chapter! I know it's been a while. Hopefully there are still a few people reading this :3 Updates will probably continue to be sporadic, because the other story I'm currently working on has many chapters that are already finished, and I'm just spreading out the time between postings; for this one, I've only written up to chapter 10 so far, but I have a general outline of where I want the story to go. Thanks for reading :)]

* * *

After they had played enough games to lose track of who had actually won (although Kyo insisted that his team had gotten 3 more points than Yuki's team), a few people headed back inside, to get caught up on homework and other various things, and some of them stayed outside, in the sunshine and fresh air.

Tohru was, of course, among those who remained. "Just look at that lake," she sighed, leaning against Yuki, who was sitting close by her. "I wish we could go for a swim."

"I'd like that," Yuki said, smiling softly.

"I bet you would," Hiro muttered tactlessly. Yuki ignored him, looking out at the water.

"You know, I think that swimming here is actually allowed; you just have to put in a request beforehand," Tamara noted. "Ariel told me something about it before. I'll check with her when I get a chance."

"Thank you; I appreciate it," Yuki said warmly.

"It's so warm out here… I think I'm gonna take a nap," Uo said, strapping a mask over her mouth.

"…The hell are you wearing that for?" Kyo asked, unnerved.

"It's so I don't die from my allergies in my sleep, dumbass. Oops, sorry-" she glanced at little Kisa, who was curled up next to Tohru- "I mean, dumbbutt."

"Who you callin' dumb?" Kyo asked, turning red.

"I believe I shall also rest for a short time," Hana announced quietly. "If anyone were to disturb my slumber… they might find that I am not the kind of person you should disturb from slumber."

"Aaand that's my cue to go," Hiro said, standing up. "Later, losers." He sauntered away while Kyo stared daggers at him.

"I wonder if Ariel's okay," Momiji mused aloud. "She still hasn't come back from the hospital wing."

"Maybe Hatori told her she needed to get some rest," Tohru reasoned. "I should check on her soon, when I go back to the Common Room."

"Will you stay for a little bit longer?" Yuki asked, his voice barely more than a whisper, close to her ear.

"Of course," Tohru answered bashfully. She relaxed into his arms as they all stared quietly out at the lake from their picnic blankets. Highly uncomfortable, Kyo slowly stood up, careful not to disturb Hana, who was already asleep (with her eyes open) and high-tailed it out of there.

* * *

The next week started off nicely with sunny skies and gentle breezes on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, but Thursday brought rain and heavy winds. It got worse as the day went on, reaching a peak during the last period of the day. Tamara and Momiji usually really liked their Defense Against the Dark Arts class, but they were getting more and more distracted by the sounds of the weather beating on the sides of the castle.

"All right; class dismissed," Professor Lupin sighed, three minutes early. The fourth-year Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors stared up at him blankly. "You heard me. I can't focus, either… Homework assignment: Go curl up with a mug of hot butterbeer and a good book."

Everyone filed out of the class happily. Momiji skipped along beside Tamara, who was still listening to the sounds of the storm.

"What do you want to do now?" he chirped. "We could play a board game, or go find Tohru, or go to the library, or get a snack, or draw pictures…"

Tamara smiled as he went on and on. "Actually, going to the library sounds pretty nice. We should get started on Professor Lupin's 'homework'."

"Yay!" They walked to the Hogwarts library, where Madam Pince actually smiled and patted Momiji's head as he passed her desk. He seemed to be one of the few people who could brighten her day.

"What shall we read?" Momiji asked as they set down their stuff at an empty table.

"Oh, I don't know. You pick one for me, and I'll pick one for you," Tamara suggested.

"Okay! That sounds like fun." Momiji went scampering off through the shelves while Tamara scanned the ones nearest to her for something he might be interested in. She decided on "The History of Honeyduke's". Tamara plucked the book from the shelf and went over to the table, eyelids feeling a bit heavy.

It wasn't long before Momiji found her asleep there, head resting on her arms upon the table. He smiled sweetly and placed a book beside her, and then hopped away to continue perusing the shelves.

* * *

The next day, Friday, Ariel trudged into Potions class and set down her books, pulling out her half-finished report on whatever the heck it was that she was supposed to be brewing with Akito. She was so distracted, it wasn't even funny. Her mind kept replaying the magical moment in which Hatori's lips had pressed gently against hers.

Akito smirked at her when he walked into the room and sat beside her, but she barely even noticed. To emphasize his presence, he brushed against her shoulder when he set up their cauldron- that got her attention.

She started writing as the last few students trickled in, followed by Professor Snape, who slammed the dungeon doors shut. "I'll be infinitely glad when this assignment is over and I don't have to deal with you anymore," Ariel muttered through her teeth. It really felt like it was being dragged on far longer than was necessary. They had been working on it for almost three weeks.

"I didn't quite catch that… You'll have to repeat yourself," Akito said silkily, leaning uncomfortably close to her. The tip of Ariel's quill almost snapped off as she attempted to keep writing without paying him any attention. "Perhaps I'm just not close enough to hear you." His hand squeezed her thigh as he leaned even closer. Ariel automatically jerked away from him, but since she was already on the edge of her seat, she fell smack on her butt, and her book and parchment clattered down beside her.

"Twenty points from Hufflepuff, Miss Tahl… for disrupting my class yet again," Snape said monotonously. Her fellow Hufflepuffs gave her sympathetic glances, and several of the Slytherins snickered. Ariel cursed mentally as she got up with as much dignity as she could muster and sat down again. Akito was sitting so close that he was practically breathing down her neck- but, of course, Professor Snape didn't seem to notice that at all.

* * *

Yuki walked out of Transfiguration class at the same time as Kyo, and they knocked against each other when they both went through the door.

"Watch where you're going, rat," Kyo growled.

Yuki glanced at him passively. "You're the one who got in _my_ way."

"Oh, yeah? Say that to my face," Kyo challenged as he followed him down the hall.

"I already did."

"Don't get smart with me!"

"Um, hello, Yuki and Kyo!" Tohru said cheerfully as she ran into them. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"No, not at all, Miss Honda," Yuki assured her, taking her hand. "Kyo was just leaving."

Kyo fumed silently at Yuki before spinning on his heel and walking away. It wasn't fair… Yuki had always been best at everything; the perfect golden child. He was a Prefect, loved by all of the teachers and all of the Sohmas, and he was the one who had captured Tohru's heart. It seemed like Yuki got everything Kyo even remotely wanted, and he didn't even have to try. One of these days, Kyo knew he could beat Yuki… He could show everyone that he was just as good as the damn rat, or better.

* * *

After dinner on a Thursday, Ariel was on her way to the library when she came across Hatori. He looked like he was uncomfortable… embarrassed to see her, even.

"I need to apologize to you," Hatori began quietly.

"You mean, about when we k-kissed?" Ariel couldn't believe she had just said that aloud, and she'd stuttered, to boot. Luckily, no one around them was actually listening to their conversation.

"It was… inappropriate of me, to say the least. You are a student, and there are boundaries between us- not to mention that we hardly even know each other."

"I _am_ 17," Ariel chided gently. "I'm a legal adult."

Hatori glanced at her, unsure of what she was getting at.

"I mean, you know… There's no rule against us, say, getting a Butterbeer at The Three Broomsticks this weekend." Ariel was screaming internally at herself. _You just asked him out! Are you crazy? Are you insane? You probably just offended him beyond the point of return- he clearly wants nothing more to do with you!_

"…I suppose that would be all right."

Ariel's heart hammered almost audibly as her brain registered his response. "Okay then… I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yes. See you then." Hatori bowed his head respectfully and continued down the hallway, leaving Ariel to flounder in her excessive amount of feels.

* * *

Tamara was sitting in the Hufflepuff common room, positively immersed in the book Momiji had left for her. It was titled, "The Last Time-Turner", and it was awesome.

The book was a fictional account about how Time-Turners were made. The main character was a brilliant wizard called The Physician who owned a spaceship that had all of the properties of a Time-Turner, and he eventually modeled the hourglass necklaces after his ship. He traveled through time and space, fixing things that weren't supposed to happen and battling creatures who wanted to take over the world. Occasionally, he would meet special Muggles that would become his companions for a while, but he usually had to say goodbye to them before long and Obliviate their memories, so they wouldn't have to carry the burden of the wonderful, yet sad memories that they shared with the Physician.

"Tamara? Sorry to interrupt you," Tohru said apologetically, "But I've been meaning to ask Ariel how her wrist is doing. I keep forgetting to talk to her, but when I saw you, I remembered. Is she all right?"

"Oh, yeah," Tamara replied, a little distracted by her book. "She said the physic- I mean, the doctor fixed her right up." _Although, she did seem a little flustered about it,_ she added silently.

"That's wonderful!" Tohru exclaimed. "I'm sure Kyo really is sorry about breaking it… I think he wants to give her a better apology, but I've learned over the years that he just has a hard time expressing his feelings."

"Does he?" Tamara said thoughtfully. "Well, don't worry… Ariel's not mad at him or anything. You can tell him that if you want."

"Oh, good," Tohru said, relieved. "I'll see you at dinner, okay?"

"Yup." Tamara waved as Tohru left, and then immediately turned her attention back to her book. She was so into it that she didn't notice the baby tiger that streaked into the room and up the stairs, towards the girls' dormitories.


	10. Getting To Know You

[**A/N:** Hello! Thank you so much for taking the time to check out this story. I really love writing it, and I hope you're enjoying it, too. Sadly, I'm going to have to put this on hiatus for a while- hopefully, not longer than a few months. I'm starting my first real job next week, and it's going to take up a lot of my time. I'll still be posting for my other stories, since I've written chapters in advance, but this is the last chapter I have so far for "Another Year At Hogwarts with the Sohmas". If you haven't already, please take a look at my other stories- you might like what you see. Thank you so much!]

* * *

Before they knew it, October was upon them. The first day of the month was a Friday, followed by the first Hogsmeade weekend they'd have since September. Many of the students were filled with excitement as they rushed through their classes and willed Saturday to come already.

Ariel, meanwhile, was filled with nervousness beyond measure. The nerves coursed through her stomach in waves during the whole day. In just one short day, she would be on an actual date with the man who had kissed her. _It would distract anyone_, she reassured herself as she floated from class to class. The only class she really noticed was Potions, since it was finally the last day she would be working on the stupid partner assignment with Akito.

Her written report was already finished before the end of class. She set it atop her Potions textbook, beside a vial of the potion she'd brewed with Akito, and sat there quietly for a moment. She wasn't sure what to do… Professor Snape detested people who worked on other classwork in his class, but he detested people who didn't work in his class even more.

Akito took the opportunity to lean into her, speaking so quietly that not even the students seated at the next desk over knew he was talking. "It's a shame that this assignment was so short… I'm going to miss working closely with you."

"I couldn't agree less," Ariel muttered, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, come now," Akito tsked. "No need to be so hostile."

"Shut your mouth and leave me alone, Akito," Ariel snapped hotly, under her breath. Her nerves were already fried, and she just wasn't going to deal with his 13-year-old hot and cold act.

Akito was actually taken aback by her reaction. "Huh." He glared at her darkly, but Ariel's attention was focused intently on the board Snape was writing on. Akito's jaw clenched. It was fun taunting her… but he wouldn't let her get away with speaking to him like that.

* * *

Momiji and Tamara sat together in the common room together before dinner. They were trying to get their Transfiguration homework finished before the weekend, so they could enjoy Hogsmeade sans the niggling thought of unfinished work.

Tamara read the questions aloud as she and Momiji wrote them and their answers down. "Describe, with examples, the ways in which Transforming Spells must be adapted when performing Cross-Species Switches… And then the last one is: If body weight is A, viciousness is V, intended transformation is T, wand power is W and concentration is C, and assuming T = (WxC)/(VxA)xZ then what does Z equal?"

"I wish Transfiguration was easier," Momiji sighed. "At least it's fun!"

"I agree," Tamara said, jotting down some notes on her answers for future reference. "It might even be my favorite class if it was a little easier. I'm glad McGonagall pushes us to do our best, though."

"Haha, what if we tried to transfigure a dragon into a bunny?" Momiji asked suddenly, giggling. "That would be really silly."

"Yeah, it would be," Tamara agreed, smiling lightly.

* * *

Akito was still glowering about the way Ariel had spoken to him in Potions class earlier. The little wench had no right to speak to him in such a manner… He only bothered with her because she was intriguing, anyway. Those smoky brown eyes and that thick, curly mane of dark hair… The way she looked when she rode a broomstick. It made him sick, how he was so drawn to her.

She was nothing special, anyway. She certainly wasn't the prettiest girl at Hogwarts, nor the most charming. But something about Ariel was just different enough, unique enough, to spark his interest… And the fact that he was interested made him hate her, and be mad at himself- although it did bring him an ounce of satisfaction whenever she squirmed away from him or flinched at his gaze.

Akito came across Hiro and Kisa, who were chatting quietly as they walked closely together. Disgusted, he stood still, staring until they noticed him.

Immediately, their high-pitched childish voices faded, and they slowed down a little, until they were standing across from him. Kisa couldn't meet his gaze, but Hiro looked defiantly up at him. An infinite moment passed while they faced off.

"…Hmph." Akito stalked through the two of them, jolting against their shoulders on purpose as he strode away. Hiro glowered after him, but Kisa glanced at the floor and tugged on Hiro's hand.

"Can we just go to dinner?"

Hiro's muscles relaxed slightly. "Yeah, fine." They walked to the Great Hall, shoulder to shoulder- with their hands almost touching.

* * *

Ariel's palms were sweating as she went into the Three Broomsticks. This was the first date she'd gone on in a long time… and it was with Hatori Sohma. She seriously hoped she wouldn't mess things up.

Her heart sank down to her stomach when she saw that Hatori was talking to a very pretty woman with a mane of curly golden hair- but then she relaxed when she saw that there was a guy next to her, who was holding her hand. Ariel made herself wait until the couple walked away before she approached Hatori's table.

"Hello," she said cheerfully, sitting down across from him. "I hope I'm not too late."

"You're right on time," Hatori said quietly. "I was just catching up with some old colleagues of mine whom I ran into- they're a doctor and a professor in archaeology. I didn't know they were in town."

"That's cool," Ariel said, glancing briefly over at the doctor and the archaeologist. She winced inwardly, wondering if Hatori even _used_ the phrase 'that's cool'.

"I… must admit I was a little surprised when you invited me here," Hatori told her. "I acted completely against protocol, and I would not blame you for holding a grudge against me."

"Wha? Hatori, I…" Ariel trailed off when Madam Rosmerta stepped up to them.

"Hello dears. Aw, Hatori… Long time, no see! What'll it be for you two today?"

"Oh, um… An iced Butterbeer, please," Ariel said distractedly.

"And a gillywater for me. Thank you, Madam," Hatori said, inclining his head.

"Sure thing. Such a gentleman, even back when you were still in school… he's a keeper," she whispered loudly to Ariel before bustling off to fill their orders.

The two of them sat there in an awkward silence for a moment as Ariel felt her cheeks get warmer and warmer.

"Um… I was saying… I'm not mad at you for kissing me." She gulped. "I enjoyed it." Ariel wanted to bury her face in her hands or crawl into a hole and die. Instead, she stared down at the table, waiting for Hatori's reply.

As she expected, he was silent for a long moment; but at last, he spoke. "…As did I." Hatori cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Yet I acted rashly and inappropriately. I… cannot deny the fact that I am attracted to you, but…" He seemed unable to finish his sentence.

"But what?" Ariel ventured to ask. "I mean, you know… we're both adults, we're both, um, interested in each other…"

"I would like to get to know you better," Hatori admitted. "You seem like a wonderful young lady, and I do enjoy your company."

"That's good," Ariel said, relieved. "I like being around you, too. And I can't thank you enough for fixing me up so nicely."

"It is my job," Hatori said simply. "But, as I was saying… I think that we should keep our interactions at a platonic level; at least for the time being. If we tried immediately to build something more, and failed, it would only cause both of us pain. I say this with your best interests in mind- I would not want to be a detriment to your final year of school."

Ariel considered that for a moment. Everything he was saying made sense, and he _did_ still want to spend time with her. She supposed she could handle that. "All right."

They paused their conversation momentarily as Madam Rosmerta delivered their drinks with a wink and sashayed away.

Ariel took a sip of her Butterbeer and regarded Hatori carefully. He smiled softly at her. "Tell me a little about yourself."

* * *

Ariel ran into Tamara once they were back on the Hogwarts Express.

"Did you have a good time?" Tamara asked as they sat down across from each other.

"Nothingnowherenoone!" Ariel blurted out. She blushed and started picking at the seat. "Er, that is to say, yes."

Tamara narrowed her eyes with a suspicious smirk. "Mmhmm."


End file.
